HawkEye 360 satellites to provide data for U.S. Space Force threat-detection system (Image Credit: Space News)
WASHINGTON — HawkEye 360 will provide data collected by its radio-frequency mapping satellites to Slingshot Aerospace for a threat-detection system the company is developing for the U.S. Space Force.
Under the agreement announced Jan. 19, Slingshot will use data from HawkEye 360’s satellites to identify potential jamming attacks or other threats that would interfere with GPS signals. Radio frequency interference has been a long-time problem for the military, exacerbated by the proliferation of electronic devices designed to disrupt GPS and other satellite signals.
The data from HawkEye 360’s satellites would “provide insight into how to detect early signs of nefarious RF activity,” the company said. HawkEye 360’s constellation detects, characterizes and geolocates RF signals from a broad range of electronic emitters used for communications and navigation.
In 2021 Slingshot Aerospace won a $2 million contract from the U.S. Space Force to develop an analytics tool that uses telemetry data from commercial satellites in low Earth orbit to identify potential sources of electronic interference on the ground. Slingshot’s cloud platform analyzes data from satellites in low Earth orbit to detect and locate RF interference that could endanger the safe operation of U.S. satellites.
Slingshot last year signed a similar agreement with Spire Global to use data from the company’s satellites.
“Slingshot Aerospace is excited to add HawkEye 360 to our world-class roster of data providers. This partnership allows us to significantly improve our ability to capture, process, and characterize the RF signal environment into relevant and timely insights for U.S. government space operators,” said Alonso Segura, the company’s senior director of government programs.
